Arts & Culture

Top Museums For Dates In Las Vegas

Dinner, movies, clubs and bars are some places to take a date, but how about a museum? In Southern Nevada, there are a number of museums that educate, inspire and entertain. You and your date can learn about Las Vegas’ past under the stars, in a transformed federal building or while playing with dinosaurs. There are displays of art and photography that capture beauty and history. There is even a museum for pinball machines for some fun time together.

The Neon Museum
770 N. Las Vegas Blvd.
Las Vegas, NV. 89101
(702) 387-6366www.neonmuseum.orgFor a walk under the stars while learning about Las Vegas’ past through neon signs, The Neon Museum was founded in 1996 as a nonprofit 501(c)3 organization dedicated to collecting and exhibiting Las Vegas signs. Hour-long guided walking tours with docents are offered in the outdoor exhibition space known as the Neon Boneyard located in the Neon Museum campus. Tours for evening as well as daytime hours vary due to the season and special events are scheduled including a free movie night from 8 to 10 p.m. on June 8 featuring a family-friendly movie.

The Mob Museum
300 Stewart Ave.
Las Vegas, NV 89101
(702) 229-2734www.themobmuseum.orgWho doesn’t love a good story about the mob? The Mob Museum in downtown Las Vegas presents the story of organized crime and law enforcement and how it shaped Southern Nevada. Housed in the actual building where federal hearings were held about organized crime, the museum offers three floors with more than 600 artifacts and a high-tech theater with movie presentations. Special events are held at the museum including hosting authors who have written about crime and/or law enforcement. As part of its educational programming series Courtroom Conversation, refreshments are served and a panel discussion is held to discuss an aspect of organized crime’s history and its impact.

For gamers, there is the old school entertainment of the Pinball Hall of Fame housed in a 10,000-square-foot facility with all pinball machines restored to playing condition for a cost of 25 to 50 cents a game. The 501(c)3 nonprofit museum was founded by the Las Vegas Pinball Collectors Club to collect, restore and display pinball machines from the 1950s to the 1990s. The museum showcases pinball and arcade novelty games and urges the public to come play. Money collected supports the museum as well as other charitable causes.Related: Top Ceramics Classes For Adults In Las Vegas

The National Atomic Testing Museum
In association with The Smithsonian Institution
755 E. Flamingo Road
Las Vegas NV 89119
(702) 794-5151www.nationalatomictestingmuseum.orgAn interesting conversation starter, the National Atomic Testing Museum showcases a collection of more than 12,000 unique artifacts in educational exhibits presenting the history of the development and testing of the nuclear bomb. If your date is interested in extraterrestrial activity, its Area 51: Myth or Reality exhibit, developed with the help of people who worked there, explores one of the most secret places in America.

The Las Vegas Natural History Museum
900 N. Las Vegas Blvd.
Las Vegas, NV 89101
(702) 384-3466www.lvnhm.orgFor those into dinosaurs, African Rainforest, Egyptian civilization or other scientific adventures; the Las Vegas Natural History Museum is a perfect date night. The Treasures of Egypt features nearly 500 reproduced artifacts including the tomb of the young Pharaoh Tutankhamun. The traveling exhibition, Hatching the Past, just opened about dinosaurs along with the museum’s permanent dinosaur exhibit hall including a 35-foot-long Tyrannosaurus Rex. The Las Vegas Founders’ African Galleries explores Africa and its wildlife.Related: Top Museum Exhibits This Spring In Las Vegas

Debbie Hall is practically a Las Vegas native (34 years and counting) and loves experiencing everything in Southern Nevada from the Las Vegas Strip to the surrounding mountains and Lake Mead. She also teaches at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas and loves sharing her knowledge. Her work can be found on Examiner.com.